Can You Wear a Suit Jacket With Jeans?
One of the “advanced” questions guys ask is if they can wear a suit jacket with jeans. For most guys, wearing a suit jacket happens only once or twice a year so, wondering if they can wear the jacket with jeans is… out of their reality. 
What i mean is this: the question is not dumb… It’s a very good question and shows you really want to be stylish.
Let’s begin with a picture of a guy in jeans and a suit jacket:
photo: yimg.com
I know what you’re thinking: it looks like the perfect blend of formal and casual.
Nonsense!
This is plain wrong. The suit is sacred. The suit jacket is supposed to be worn together with the dress pants and there’s no way around that.
It’s commonly accepted that, if you want to stand out in a suit, you should play around with the model, the lapels, the shirt, tie or pocket square.
If you want to “borrow” from the suit’s “formality”… go for a sports jacket.
Sports jackets are made to be worn in casual situations (including jeans). The have a more casual air but still score plenty of points when it comes to you being classy.
Here’s a sports jacket with a suit:
photo: buzzillions.com
Much better, right?
Now, if you come back to the first picture and look at the black suit jacket…
do you notice the “disconnect”? The suit jacket looks just too… formal compared to the jeans.
So, remember this rule: a suit is a suit and you don’t want to wear it’s dress pants and jacket separately.
Totally disagree! I have many a time rocked a suit jacket with jeans and done so with panache. I follow the rule that the darker the denim the better (without being black or raw denim).
The first picture looks great and he accents the bold jacket very well with a crisp white shirt and rawhide belt.
Hi Bryan,
Finally someone who disagrees with me!
Indeed the contrast is very good in the first picture but that’s not my issue.
My issue has to do with not mixing certain clothes. I’m referring to the suit, of course. A suit is a suit and should be worn that way. That’s why sport jackets are becoming so popular: to be worn in casual situations.
For someone who’s not that into style.. they’ll never make the difference between a suit jacket and a sport jacket. But to someone who knows that it’s a suit jacket…
It’s like the suit jacket screaming to him “take me back to my dress pants!”
Leaving this aside, I’m very happy that you like experimenting. Combining formal with casual is one of my favorite things to do when I want to look extra-stylish.
I think first pic looks pretty decent. But the suit’s shine kinda leaves a bad look. I think a jacket + nice t-shirt and dark blue jeans can look fine in most situations.
Agreed, but I’m advocating go for a sports jacket, not a suit jacket. I’d never wear my suit jacket with something else other than the suit pants.